Jesus talked about hell, more than anyone in Scripture, but many ELCA leaders are so enamored with their own "enlightened" views that they have decided and teach that hell is not real and everyone goes to heaven. They believe they are more attuned to truth then the Son of God, I guess. This is ELCA pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber’s teaching. She has already revealed that she is a universalist (see here) and in a recent sermon Nadia tells us that hell is "imaginary." Here is her direct quote, “One of the more interesting things folks will say to me is: ‘I’m not religious or anything, I just hope that being a good person is enough.’ To which I always want to say… ‘enough for what?’ … avoiding the punishment of burning in the eternal fires of some kind of imaginary hell?” (see here)

As I’ve already mentioned, “hell deniers” must be deceived or in a state of denial because Jesus continually warned people about hell and being eternally separated from God. In Matthew 25, Jesus talks about people being separated like sheep and goats and He says the goats "will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” Elsewhere He says, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).

Hell is real. Telling people that it is not, is a lie from Satan, and it can lead people to think that faith in Christ is not necessary, that one can believe what ever they want and still go to heaven. People will end up in hell because of this lie.

Stop listening to people who teach contrary to God’s Word and warn others about them. They are false teachers.

Faced with an ELCA populated with many wolves in clerics' clothing, it's refreshing to have access to shepherds who did regard and do regard the Bible as God's Word, not a book of helpful hints that can be amended at the whim of delegates to a denominational conference.

One such shepherd was Martin Luther:

“It [the Gospel] teaches us everything — the nature of God, of ourselves, and what has been and is to be in regard to heaven, hell and earth, to angels and devils. It enables us to know how to conduct ourselves in relation to these — whence we are and whither we go. But, being deceived by the devil, we forsake the light of day and seek to find truth among philosophers and heathen totally ignorant of such matters. In permitting ourselves to be blinded by human doctrines, we return to the night. . . Paul says, ‘Neither present your members unto sin as instruments of unrighteousness’ (Rom. 6:13), meaning: Let not the works of darkness get such control of you as to render your members weapons of unrighteousness.” [Martin Luther, “First Sunday in Advent,” Sermons of Martin Luther, Vol. 5, Baker Books 1995, pp. 17, 19] -- http://www.lutherdansk.dk/Web-advent%20engelsk-KP/Adventpostillen.htm — pt. 19

Another such shepherd is Russell Moore:

". . .Apart from the sanctity of life, Moore briefly touched on Christian sexual ethics. He noted some Evangelicals are “afraid to speak up on a biblical view of issues of human sexuality because they’re afraid that somehow that means they will be associated with people in polyester somewhere that they don’t want to be like. How cowardly.” . . .

". . .“If we are silent about what the Scriptures and 2,000 years of Church history has taught us about human sexuality and what it means to be right with God and what it means for children to grow up with both a mother and a father, if we are silent at any of those points then we’re really not the justice people, we’re really not Gospel people. We’re just people who are protecting our platforms and we’re just choosing on which one to stand.”

Next, Moore stressed that faithful Christians cannot neglect the reality of Hell. “There is a great valley that separates the just from the unjust and the basis for that separation is the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said. “We cannot be people who are concerned about Justice if we are embarrassed about the doctrine of Hell. If you are embarrassed about the doctrine of Hell because it reminds you of some uneducated backwoods preacher in your town, what you’re embarrassed of is not him. What you’re embarrassed about is Jesus Himself…”

Rev. Bolz-Weber says, "...Jesus told them a parable about a seemingly bad son and a seemingly good son and how not one thing about their behavior had any effect whatsoever on the heart of their father. All the love the father had was theirs no matter what."

Rev. Bolz-Weber rejects the concept of judgment or condemnation entirely; so in reality her message is NOT, as she claims, that sins can be forgiven, but rather that there is no such thing as sin. God is okay with whatever you do. Rev. Bolz-Weber is thus leading people to the unpardonable sin: contempt for the conscience and for all truth, contempt for the Spirit of truth.

"When [the Counselor] comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.... When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth." (John 16:8, 13)

"And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." (Matt. 12:31-32)

"They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness." (2 Thess. 2:10-11)

Thank you for this explanation. I was trying to explain this to some of the ladies in my WELCA group and I wish I had been as eloquent. the next time this issue comes up, I may have to read this comment to them.

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Carl W Baggett Jr

6/16/2016 01:29:43 am

In light of the tragedy in Orlando, does Weber believe Omar Mir Seddique Mateen is in Heaven now? Methinks not.

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Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. ​1 Thessalonians 5:21

Dan Skogen

Former ELCA seminary student and former ELCA member who is fed up with the ELCA's consistent mockery of God's Word.

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